Deepwater Durban Exploration Area. Final Report. The world s leading sustainability consultancy. Environmental Management Programme (EMPr) March 2014

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1 Deepwater Durban Exploration Area Environmental Management Programme (EMPr) Final Report March The world s leading sustainability consultancy

2 ExxonMobil Exploration and Production South Africa Limited Deepwater Durban Exploration Area: Environmental Management Programme (EMPr) Final Report March 2014 For and on behalf of Environmental Resources Management Approved by: Henry Camp Signed: Position: Partner Date: 14 March 2014 This report has been prepared by Environmental Resources Management the trading name of Environmental Resources Management Limited, with all reasonable skill, care and diligence within the terms of the Contract with the client, incorporating our General Terms and Conditions of Business and taking account of the resources devoted to it by agreement with the client. The report has been prepared for submission to the Petroleum Agency of South Africa (PASA). Any other use, distribution or publication of this report is prohibited without the prior written approval of ERM and the Client.

3 EMEPSAL PART A: EXECUTIVE SUMMARY DEEPWATER DURBAN EXPLORATION AREA EXECUTIVE SUMMARY INTRODUCTION ExxonMobil Exploration and Production South Africa Limited (EMEPSAL) has submitted an application to the Petroleum Agency of South Africa (PASA) for an Exploration Right in terms of Section 79 of the Mineral and Petroleum Resources Development Act (MPRDA) to explore for oil and gas in the Deepwater Durban Exploration Area (hereafter referred to as the Exploration Area) off the East Coast of South Africa. The Exploration Area comprises license blocks 3130 D, 3131, 3132, 3133, 3134 (portion of) and PASA accepted EMEPSAL s application on 22 November In terms of the MPRDA, EMEPSAL is required to submit an Environmental Management Programme (EMPr) to cover the proposed activities to PASA for consideration and for approval by the Minister of Mineral Resources. EMEPSAL has appointed Environmental Resources Management (ERM) to prepare this EMPr. The process of preparing the EMPr involved the evaluation of the environmental and social setting, identification of potential impacts, and development of mitigations or actions to avoid or reduce impacts. This EMPr was developed from available secondary data (including the PASA-approved generic EMPr). The EMPr also draws on ERM s experience preparing EMPrs for similar activities and in similar settings as well as conducting environmental assessments for oil and gas exploration activities globally. It also incorporates the results of studies of specific topic areas including: Marine fish and fishing activities by David Japp of CapFish; and Marine fauna by Dr Andrea Pulfrich of Pisces Environmental Services. Location The Deepwater Durban Exploration Area is located offshore of Durban between Port St Johns and Richards Bay (1) (Figure 0.1). The Exploration Area lies approximately 50 km offshore of the East Coast of South Africa (60 km south east of Port Edward) at its nearest point and extends approximately 380 km offshore to the boundary of the Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ). The total area of the Exploration Area is approximately 50,000 km² with water depths that range from 2,200 m to 3,600 m. The proposed exploration activities (described in Chapter 2) will be undertaken over much of the Exploration Area. (1) Location delineation established by perpendicular lines from the shoreline. ENVIRONMENTAL RESOURCES MANAGEMENT MARCH 2014 I FINAL REPORT

4 Figure 0.1 Map of the Deepwater Durban Exploration Area (Black Outline showing the Exploration Area) Source: ERM, 2013

5 PROJECT DESCRIPTION EMEPSAL s minimum proposed exploration programme is expected to commence with the acquisition of airborne geophysics data in The airborne geophysics and licensed seismic survey data obtained would be analysed to determine the geological structures and potential for presence of oil and gas. Depending on the results of the analysis, the following activities may then be undertaken during EMEPSAL s proposed 3-year work programme: Additional 2D seismic survey; 3D seismic survey; Seabed surface heat flow measurements; Seabed and water column sampling including piston coring; Multibeam echo sounder and sub-bottom profile survey; and Autonomous Underwater Vehicle (AUV) survey. These activities would be carried out in sequence or in parallel and the schedule for these activities has not yet been determined and will be dependent on the result of the initial work. The purpose of undertaking such exploration activities is to investigate the subsea geological structures to determine the presence of naturally occurring hydrocarbons (i.e. oil and gas). Proposed exploration activities are further described in Chapter 2. KEY ASPECTS OF THE AFFECTED ENVIRONMENT Salient features related to the baseline conditions within the East Coast area in general, and the Exploration Area, in particular, are presented below: Major circulation patterns, water masses and water properties in the region are influenced by the Agulhas Current, the continental shelf, and seasonal weather patterns. The Exploration Area is located offshore, where marine habitats are largely ubiquitous, being particular only to substrate type or depth zone. Faunal communities within the offshore marine habitat display considerable temporal and spatial variability. Due to the nutrient-poor characteristics of water in the Agulhas Current, phytoplankton, zooplankton and ichthyoplankton presence in the Exploration Area are expected to be extremely low. A number of commercially important fish species, including tuna and swordfish, are found within the Exploration Area. ENVIRONMENTAL RESOURCES MANAGEMENT MARCH 2014 III FINAL REPORT

6 There are 28 to 38 species of cetaceans (whales and dolphins) that are known (historic sightings or strandings) or likely (habitat projections based on known species parameters) to occur in the region. Of the migratory cetaceans that may pass through the Exploration Area, the blue, sei and humpback whales are listed as Endangered and the Southern right and fin whales as Vulnerable. Leatherback, loggerhead, green and hawksbill turtles are known to occur in South African waters. Leatherback and loggerhead turtles nest on the beaches of KwaZulu-Natal while the green turtle is a non-breeding resident and the hawksbill turtle occurs infrequently. These species could be encountered offshore in the Exploration Area as they move through during their foraging and nesting migrations. There are four Marine Protected Areas (MPAs) inshore of the Exploration Area which include the Hluleka and Pondoland MPAs located long the Wild Coast, and the Trafalgar MPA and Aliwal MPA located on the KwaZulu-Natal coast. Due to seabed characteristics, a relatively high proportion of the total pelagic longline fishing catch in the local area occurs within the Exploration Area. There is a high density of shipping traffic along the inshore edge of the Exploration Area, which generally includes commercial and fishing vessels. CONSULTATION ACTIVITIES The consultation process followed was in accordance with the requirements contained within the Minerals and Petroleum Resources Development Act (Act 28 of 2002) (MPRDA), the MPRDA Regulations GN 527 of 2004, and the generic EMPr guideline and template documents. The following activities were undertaken: A stakeholder database was developed through stakeholder analysis and using previous studies in the area. A Background Information Document was compiled and distributed to all identified I&APs. Adverts were placed between Thursday, 12 December and Friday, 13 December 2013 in The Times, The South Coast Herald, The PE Herald, The Mercury, the Upper Coast Feaver, and the South Coast Feaver notifying the public about the proposed project and providing details of the consultation process and information on how members of the public could provide input on the forthcoming survey and inviting their comment. A period of 21 calendar days, excluding the holiday period of 15 December 2 January (12 December 2013 to 20 January 2014) was allowed for I&APs to submit issues or concerns for consideration in the compilation of the EMPr. The initial comments period also allowed for members of the public to register as I&APs. ENVIRONMENTAL RESOURCES MANAGEMENT MARCH 2014 IV FINAL REPORT

7 The draft EMPr was made available to I&APs for a period of 30 calendar days on the project website, from 7 February to 10 March Notification of the availability of the draft document was sent directly to all I&APs on the stakeholder database. Copies of the report were placed in the following public libraries: Port Shepstone, Amazimtoti, Margate, Austerville, Durban, Ballito, Richards Bay, KwaDukuza, Umkomaas and Scottburgh. An additional advert advertising the availability of the report, was published during the week of 2 March 2014 in the following newspapers The Times, The Mercury, The PE Herald, The South Coast Herald, The South Coast Fever, The Upper Coast Fever, The Mthatha Express and Ilanga. Notices were in English, isizulu, and isixhosa. During the draft EMPr disclosure period a series of face-to-face engagements were conducted including group meetings (in an open house format) and focused meetings (in a standard meeting format) as part of the stakeholder engagement process. Two group meetings were held, one in Durban (18 February 2014), and one in Port Shepstone (19 February 2014). In addition, three focus meetings were held with: Ezemvelo KZN Wildlife in Pietermaritzburg (18 February 2014); KZN Provincial Department of Environmental Affairs in Pietermaritzburg (19 February 2014); and the pelagic long-line fisheries representatives in Cape Town (21 February 2014). All comments received on the EMPr received on or before March 10 th have been compiled and documented in the Comments and Responses report for submission to PASA. Key issues raised during the initial comment period related to the following: Potential impacts on sensitive marine fauna; Public consultation process Climate change and Lack of research. SUMMARY OF IMPACT ASSESSMENT The impact assessment identifies and assesses the actual and potential environmental (Chapter 5) and socio-economic (Chapter 6) impacts of the proposed exploration activities associated with different stages of the project. In addition, measures to mitigate negative impacts and enhance positive impacts are described. An impact assessment scoping process was undertaken for the proposed activities. Interactions between proposed project activities and environmental or social receptors were initially identified and areas where interactions are not expected to occur were not assessed further. Areas where potential interactions exist were further evaluated and those where potential for impact does not exist or the impact is insignificant are briefly discussed and scoped ENVIRONMENTAL RESOURCES MANAGEMENT MARCH 2014 V FINAL REPORT

8 out of the detailed assessment. Those interactions where a potentially significant impact may result are then further assessed to determine the nature and characteristics of the impact. Impact Assessment is a systematic process that identifies and evaluates the potential impacts a proposed project may have on the biophysical and socioeconomic environment, and develops mitigation measures that will be incorporated in order to avoid, minimise or reduce negative impacts and enhance positive impacts. A summary of the impact assessment findings are presented in Table 1.0 below: ENVIRONMENTAL RESOURCES MANAGEMENT MARCH 2014 VI FINAL REPORT

9 Table 1.0 Impact Assessment Summary Environmental Receptor (Significance) Socio-economic Receptors (Significance) Project Activities Biophysical Geology, Sediment and Physical Oceanography Air quality Water quality Phytoplankton & Zooplankton Benthic Fauna Invertebrates Fish Turtles Seabirds Cetaceans (Whales & Dolphins) Socio-economic Sites of Historic, Archaeological and Cultural Interest including Shipwrecks Communication Infrastructure Marine Transport Routes Fisheries activities - Commercial Local and Macro Economy Employment (Job Creation) Tourism Airborne Geophysics Programme Seismic Survey Planning Phase NEG-L (L-M) NEG +ve NEG +ve NEG NEG +ve NEG +ve Seismic Survey Mobilisation Phase Seismic Survey Phase NEG NEG/ L NEG/L NEG (L) NEG/L (L/ M) (NEG/L/ M) (L -M) Post Seismic Survey Demobilisation Phase Heat Flow Measurements, Seabed NEG (L) and Water Column Sampling and Sediment Coring Multibeam Echo Sounder and Subbottom Profile Programme Autonomous Underwater Vehicle (AUV) Programme Use of Survey and Support Vessels NEG L (M) NEG Note: White shading indicates that this is not considered in the detailed impact assessment or that there are no interactions. NEG=Negligible, L=Low Impact, M=Medium Impact, H=High Impact. +ve Positive Impact All potential impacts are negative unless specified otherwise. In Brackets prior to mitigation NEG (L- M) NEG (L) NEG +ve NEG +ve NEG +ve NEG +ve NEG +ve NEG +ve NEG +ve NEG +ve NEG +ve NEG

10 The impact assessment identified five environmental and socio-economic impacts relating to airborne geophysics and seismic surveys where the residual (post mitigation) impact is deemed to be of low to negligible significance: The potential impact of the airborne geophysics survey on marine fauna (cetaceans in particular) is deemed to be of low to medium significance (prior to mitigation), and of negligible to low significance on the implementation of mitigation such as pre-planning the flight paths. The impacts of seismic surveys on fish species are considered to be of low (physiological injury/ mortality of migratory pelagic fish species) and medium (behavioural) significance prior to mitigation. With the implementation of mitigation measures including, but not limited to, soft-starts and low-level shooting during line changes (if considered appropriate) the residual impacts are considered low (behaviour) and negligible (physiological). Potential impacts on cetaceans as a result of the acoustic emissions associated with the seismic survey are considered low to medium (behavioural avoidance of mysticete cetaceans) and medium (behavioural avoidance of odontocete, and communication) prior to mitigation. Residual impacts are considered to be negligible to low (behaviour avoidance of mysticete) or low (physiological injury of Mysticete and Odontocete, and behaviour avoidance of toothed whales) after the implementation of mitigation measures. Mitigation includes the use of soft starts, not initiating shooting until confirmation that there are no cetaceans within 500 m of the seismic vessel, as well as the avoidance of certain important migration time periods. Potential impacts on turtles as a result of the seismic survey are considered low (physiological injury/ mortality), low (collision or entanglement), negligible (behavioural avoidance), low to medium (reproductive success) and low to negligible (hatchling survival) significance prior to mitigation. Mitigation includes soft starts, observation and allowing a radius of 500 m before commencement with seismic shooting and tail buoys to be fitted with turtle guards. With the implementation of this mitigation, the residual significance is considered negligible (physiological injury/mortality; collisions/ entanglement and behavioural avoidance), and negligible to low (reproductive success). The impacts on commercial pelagic long-lining are deemed to be of medium significance prior to mitigation. With the implementation of mitigation measures such as using a chase boat and sweeper vessel to maintain the exclusion zone, as well as engagement with fishing operators, the Ports and SA Hydrographic Office and other IAPs through an ENVIRONMENTAL RESOURCES MANAGEMENT MARCH 2014 VIII FINAL REPORT

11 appointed Fisheries Liaison Officer (FLO), the residual significance is considered to be of low significance. Key mitigation measures for seismic activities also include the avoidance of the peak humpback migration period of June to November; MMOs performing visual observations to monitor impacts on cetaceans, diving birds and turtles, and specifically verifying that the seismic vessel does not fire within a minimum of 500 m of these species if they are engaged in critical activities; and the use of soft start procedures (only initiated once key marine fauna species are confirmed as far as possible - to not be within 500 m of the seismic survey vessel). The use of Passive Acoustic Monitoring (PAM) during seismic surveys is required, specifically during night time and adverse weather conditions when visual observations are not possible. An MMO will also be required on board during the undertaking of the multibeam bathymetric survey in order to ensure the minimisation of impacts to marine fauna. If possible, the seabed sampling plan should be designed and confirmed with available data prior to sampling activities such that they do not impact potentially sensitive deepwater reef, coral and sponge habitats. Monitoring, auditing and reporting requirements are defined within the Implementation Plan to monitor EMEPSAL s compliance with the EMPr. Mitigation measures identified within the impact assessment are summarised into an Implementation Plan which describes the framework for implementation of environmental and social controls during all phases of the exploration activities. In order to facilitate the implementation of controls, the Implementation Plan specifies the appointment of a Fisheries Liaison Officer (FLO) and a Marine Mammal Observer (MMO) during certain activities. ENVIRONMENTAL RESOURCES MANAGEMENT MARCH 2014 IX FINAL REPORT

12 CONTENTS PART A: ENVIRONMENTAL MANAGEMENT PROGRAMME 1 GENERAL INFORMATION INTRODUCTION ADMINISTRATIVE REQUIREMENTS Minerals and Petroleum Resources Development Act and Regulations National Environmental Management Act and Regulations EMEPSAL s Environmental Policy and Monitoring Petroleum Agency South Africa Requirements EXPLORATION RIGHT APPLICANT DETAILS PROPOSED ACTIVITIES DESCRIPTION OF THE EXPLORATION AREA Location Subsea Geology and Hydrocarbon Potential Location of Other Oil and Gas Activities PURPOSE AND NEED STRUCTURE OF THIS EMPR DESCRIPTION OF THE PROPOSED ACTIVITIES Overview Airborne Geophysics Programme Seismic Survey Overview D and 3D Seismic Surveys Seismic Survey Vessel and Equipment Acoustic Sources Recording Equipment Exclusion Zone Specifics of the Seismic Survey Programme Heat Flow Measurements, Seabed and Water Column Sampling ` Programme Multi-beam Echo Sounder and Sub-Bottom Profile Programme (Sonar Techniques) Sediment Coring Programme Autonomous Underwater Vehicle (AUV ) Programme Support Operations DESCRIPTION OF THE AFFECTED ENVIRONMENT INTRODUCTION General Location Area of Influence (AoI) METEOROLOGY PHYSICAL OCEANOGRAPHY Waves 3-6

13 3.3.2 Tides Bathymetry and Sediments Water Masses Circulation Upwelling Seamounts Nutrient Distributions Turbidity BIOLOGICAL ENVIRONMENT Phytoplankton Ichthyoplankton Invertebrates Benthic Biota Pelagic and Demersal Fish Turtles Seabirds Marine Mammals HUMAN UTILISATION Fisheries Commercial Shipping Recreational Uses Subsistence Fishers Mining and Prospecting Rights and Activities Marine Protected Areas Focus Areas for Offshore Biodiversity Protection Heritage Sites Other SUMMARY CONSULTATION WITH INTERESTED AND AFFECTED PARTIES CONSULTATION PROCESS Identification of Interested and Affected Parties Description of Consultation Activities SUMMARY OF KEY ISSUES RAISED Sensitive Marine Fauna Public Consultation Climate Change Lack of Research GRIEVANCE MECHANISM 4-6 APPENDIX A BACKGROUND INFORMATION DOCUMENT APPENDIX B-1 ADVERTISEMENTS APPENDIX B-2 I&AP CORRESPONDENCE APPENDIX B-3 DATABASE APPENDIX B-4 COMMENTS AND RESPONSES REPORT

14 5 ENVIRONMENTAL IMPACT ASSESSMENT INTRODUCTION ENVIRONMENTAL IMPACT SCOPING Introduction Airborne Geophysics Programme Seismic Survey Planning and Mobilisation Phases Seismic Survey Phase Post-seismic Survey Demobilisation Phase Heat Flow Measurements, Seabed and Water Column Sampling Programme and Sediment Coring Multi-beam Seabed Echo Sounder and Sub-bottom Profile Programme Autonomous Underwater Vehicle (AUV) Programme Use of Survey and Support Vessels IMPACT ASSESSMENT METHODOLOGY ENVIRONMENTAL IMPACT ASSESSMENT Airborne Geophysics Programme Seismic Survey Phase Heat Flow Measurements, Seabed and Water Column Sampling Programme and Sediment Coring ENVIRONMENTAL IMPACT SUMMARY Scheduling of Exploration Activities SOCIO-ECONOMIC IMPACT ASSESSMENT INTRODUCTION SOCIO-ECONOMIC IMPACT SCOPING Introduction Airborne Geophysics Programme Seismic Survey Planning Phase Seismic Survey Mobilisation Phase Seismic Survey Phase Post-seismic Survey Demobilisation Phase Heat Flow Measurements, Seabed and Water Column Sampling Programme and Sediment Coring Multi-beam Seabed Echo Sounder and Sub-bottom Profile Programme Autonomous Underwater Vehicle (AUV) Programme Use of Survey and Support Vessels SOCIO-ECONOMIC IMPACT ASSESSMENT Airborne Geophysics Programme Seismic Survey Planning Phase Seismic Survey Phase Post Seismic Survey Demobilisation Phase Heat Flow Measurements, Seabed and Water Column Sampling Programme and Sediment Coring Multi-beam Seabed Echo Sounder and Sub-bottom Profile Programme Autonomous Underwater Vehicle (AUV) Programme Exploration Activity Impacts SOCIO-ECONOMIC IMPACT SUMMARY 6-13

15 7 CONCLUSION REFERENCES 8-1 PART B: IMPLEMENTATION PLAN PART C: SUPPORTING DOCUMENTATION TABLES Table 1.1 Structure of this EMPr 1-14 Table 3.1 Summary of Tidal Levels around Southern African Coast 3-9 Table 3.22 Some of the More Important Large Migratory Pelagic Fish Likely to occur in the Offshore Regions of the East Coast 3-20 Table 3.33 Resident and Fairly-Common to Common Visiting Seabirds Present along the East Coast (from CSIR, 1998) 3-27 Table 3.44 Cetaceans Occurrence off the East Coasts of South Africa, Their Seasonality and Likely Encounter Frequency with Proposed Seismic Survey Operations3-29 Table 3.55 List of Commercial Fisheries Operating in South African Waters 3-36 Table 3.66 Number of Vessels Calling at South African Ports and Sailing Past 3-45 Table 3.77 Proposed Focus Areas for Additional Marine Biodiversity Protection along the KwaZulu-Natal Coast 3-53 Table 3.88 Key Objectives, Stakeholders and Management Considerations for each of the Offshore Biodiversity Protection Focus Areas 3-57 Table 5.1 Biophysical Scoping Matrix 5-4 Table 5.2 Impact Assessment Terminology 5-13 Table 5.3 Assessment of Impact Magnitude 5-14 Table 5.4 Overall Significance Criteria 5-15 Table 5.5 Comparison of Underwater Noise Types 5-19 Table 5.6 Timing for Recovery of Seabed Habitats after Dredging (after Ellis, 1996) Table 5.7 Summary of the Environmental Impacts Associated with of the Exploration Activities 5-45 Table 5.8 Summary of Breeding and Migration Seasons 5-46 Table 5.9 Available Operational Windows for Project Activities 5-48 Table 6.1 Socio-economic Scoping Matrix 6-3 Table 6.2 Summary of the Significance of Identified Impacts of the Proposed Seismic Surveys within the Exploration Area 6-15

16 FIGURES Figure 1.1 Deepwater Durban Exploration Area 1-10 Figure 1.2 Locality Map Showing the Delineation of Neighbouring Projects 1-12 Figure 2.1 General Principle of Seismic Surveys 2-4 Figure 2.2 The Configuration of a Typical 3D Seismic Survey Operation 2-5 Figure 2.3 Seismic Survey Vessel Conducting a 3D Seismic Survey 2-7 Figure 2.4 Typical Marine Airgun Array 2-8 Figure 2.5 Airguns On-board a Seismic Survey Vessel Prior to Deployment 2-8 Figure 2.6 Diagram Representing 3D Seismic Survey Layout 2-9 Figure 2.7 A Typical Streamer Containing Hydrophones Ready to be Deployed 2-10 Figure 2.8 Safe Operational Limit around a 3D Seismic Survey Array 2-11 Figure 2.9 Schematic Illustrating the Movement of a 3D Seismic Survey Vessel 2-12 Figure 2.10 Loading of Supplies onto a Seismic Survey Vessel 2-14 Figure 2.11 Example of Heat Flow Probe 2-15 Figure 2.12 The Multibeam System uses a Fan of Sound Beams to Construct a 3D Picture of the Seafloor Figure 2.13 Diagram Illustrating a Piston Core Operation at the Seabed 2-19 Figure 2.14 Deepwater Seafloor Mapping using an AUV 2-20 Figure 3.1 Map of the Deepwater Durban Exploration Area (Black Outline showing the Exploration Area) 3-4 Figure 3.2 Main Weather Systems Associated with Southern Africa (Exploration Area Shown as a Red Outline) 3-6 Figure 3.3 VOS* Wind Speed vs Wind Direction for Port Shepstone (30.0 to 30.9 S and 31.0 to 31.9 E) ( to ; 7,369 Records) 3-7 Figure 3.4 Important Physical Processes and Features Associated with the South African Coastal Region (Exploration Area Shown as a Red Outline) 3-9 Figure 3.5 Coastal and Offshore Benthic Habitat Types in South Africa (Exploration Area Shown as Red Outline) 3-11 Figure 3.6 Sea Surface Temperature (September 2010) and the Agulhas Current (Black Arrows) (Exploration Area Shown as Red Outline) 3-13 Figure 3.7 The Inshore and Offshore Bioregions Occurring in the Proposed Exploration Area (Exploration Area Shown in Red Outline) 3-15 Figure 3.8 Example of Phytoplankton (left) and Zooplankton (right) Found in Southern African Waters 3-16 Figure 3.9 Major Fish Spawning, Nursery and Recruitment Areas along the KwaZulu- Natal Coast (Exploration Area Shown by Red Outline) 3-18 Figure 3.10 Long-Distance Return Migrations of Two Tracked Great White Sharks along the South African Coast in Relation to the Exploration Area (Red Outline). The Black Trace Shows a Migration from 24 May 2 November 2003; the White Trace Shows a Migration from 31 May 1 October Figure 3.11 Leatherback (Left) and Loggerhead Turtles (Right) occur along the East Coast of South Africa 3-24 Figure 3.12 Spatial Distribution of Satellite Tagged Loggerhead Females (2011/2012) in Relation to the Proposed Exploration Area (Exploration Area Shown by White Outline) 3-26 Figure 3.13 The Post-Nesting Distribution of Nine Satellite Tagged Leatherback Females ( ) in Relation to Proposed Exploration Area (Exploration Area Shown by White Outline) 3-27 Figure 3.14 Toothed Whales that occur on the South and East Coasts Include the

17 Bottlenose Dolphin (Left) and the Indo-Pacific Humpback Dolphin (Right)3-36 Figure 3.15 Schematic Diagram of Trawl Gear Typically Used by Demersal Trawl Vessels3-38 Figure 3.16 Distribution of Offshore KwaZulu-Natal Prawn Trawl Fishing Effort (Hours) (Exploration Area Shown by Blue Outline) 3-39 Figure 3.17 Spatial Distribution of Catch Landed by the Traditional Linefish Sector ( ) (Exploration Area Shown by Blue Outline) 3-41 Figure 3.18 Typical Pelagic Long-line Gear Configuration Targeting Tuna, Swordfish and Shark Species 3-42 Figure 3.19 Recent Distribution of Long-line Fishing Catch (kg) Targeting Large Pelagic Species (Tuna, Swordfish), (Exploration Area Shown by Blue Outline)3-43 Figure 3.20 Recent Distribution of Long-line Fishing Effort (Hooks) Targeting Large Pelagic Species (Tuna, Swordfish), (Exploration Area Shown by Blue Outline) 3-43 Figure 3.21 Historical Distribution of Long-line Fishing Catches (kg) Targeting Large Pelagic Species (Tuna, Swordfish), (Exploration Area Shown by Blue Outline) Source: CapFish, Figure 3.22 Historical Distribution of Long-line Fishing Effort (Hooks) Targeting Large Pelagic Species (Tuna, Swordfish), (Exploration Area Shown by Blue Outline) 3-44 Figure 3.23 Major Shipping Routes along the South African Coast (Exploration Area Shown by Red Outline) 3-46 Figure 3.24 Safe Shipping Routes around the Coast of South Africa (Exploration Area Shown by Red Outline) 3-47 Figure 3.25 Schematic of Manganese Nodules off Southern Africa (Exploration Area Shown by Red Outline) 3-50 Figure 3.26 Pondoland MPA Zones 3-52 Figure 3.27 Marine Protected Areas, IBAs, Proposed Biodiversity Protection Areas and the Proposed Thukela MPA within the Exclusive Economic Zone off the KwaZulu-Natal Coast (Exploration Area Shown by Red Outline). The Numbers Represent the Various Biodiversity Focus Areas Provided in Table Figure 3.28 Ten Focus Areas for Offshore Biodiversity Protection through MPAs or Other Types of Spatial Management (Exploration Area Shown by Red Outline) 3-57 Figure 3.29 Estuaries along the Wild Coast. The Estuaries in Red are Estuary Protected Areas (EPAs) (Exploration Area Shown by Red Outline) 3-60 Figure 3.30 Schematic Diagram of the Location of Undersea Cables around the South African Coast (Exploration Area Shown as Red Outline) 3-62 Figure 3.31 Farms in Operation during 2010 and the Distribution of Cultured Marine Aquaculture Species (Exploration Area Shown by Red Outline) 3-63 Figure 3.32 Location of Ammunition Dump Sites along the East Coast (Exploration Area Shown by Red Outline) 3-64 Figure 4.1 EMPr Process 4-2 Figure 5.2 Example of Turtles Trapped in Tail Buoy 5-30

18 LIST OF ACRONYMS 2 D Two-Dimensional 3 D Three-Dimensional BID Background Information Document CBO Community Based Organisation CCA Crowther Campbell and Associates CPUE Catch per Unit Effort CSIR Council for Scientific and Industrial Research DEA Department of Environmental Affairs DMR Department of Mineral Resources EIA Environmental Impact Assessment EMPR Environmental Management Programme ER Exploration Rights ERM Environmental Resources Management FLO Fisheries Liaison Officer HESS High Energy Seismic Survey Team IADC International Association for Drilling contractors IAGC International Association of Geophysical contractors; I&APs Interested & Affected Parties IMO International Marine Organisation IPIECA International Petroleum Industry Environmental Conservation Association ISO International Standards Organization; JNCC Joint Nature Conservation Committee LFAS Low Frequency Active Sonar MARPOL International Convention for the Protection of Pollution from Ships, 1973 as modified by the Protocol of 1978 MMO Marine Mammal Observer MPA Marine Protected Area MRPDA Mineral & Petroleum Recourses Development Act NEMA National Environmental Management Act NGO Non-Governmental Organisation NSMRL Naval Submarine Medical Research Laboratory OGP International Association for Oil and Gas Producers ONR Office of Naval Research PAM Passive Acoustic Monitoring PASA Petroleum Agency of South Africa PTS Permanent Threshold Shifts RSA Republic of South Africa SB/R Spawning Biomass per Recruit SHE Safety, Health and Environment SAMSA South African Maritime Safety Authority SAN South African Navy TCP Technical Cooperation Permits TTS Temporary Threshold Shifts VPA Virtual Population Analysis